The Web Application Hacker’s Handbook Discovering and Exploiting Security Flaws

Thick Client Components

Going beyond the capabilities of JavaScript, some web applications employ

thicker client technologies that use custom binary code to extend the browser’s

built-in capabilities in arbitrary ways. These components may be deployed as

bytecode that is executed by a suitable browser plug-in, or may involve

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Chapter 3 

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Web Application Technologies

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installing native executables onto the client computer itself. The thick-client

technologies you are likely to encounter when attacking web applications are:

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Java applets

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ActiveX controls

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Shockwave Flash objects

These technologies are described in detail in Chapter 5.